Easiest way to install engine/trans?

[DARTDALE]

Hey Folks! I am about to install a 360 and s/b 727 into my 72 Dart. I will be doing this all by myself [as usual]. Is it easier to join the engine and tranny together before I drop the set up in the car,or install trans.in car then join the engine to it? I pulled the 318/and tranny as a unit.I must be a lot nicer to the engine bay now the car is painted.Any advice will be much appreciated.Thanks in advance!! :toothy7: DartDale

 

[rumblefish360]

I'm very used to doing it as a completed unit with an engine tilter. Slip in, slip out.
Since the paint is fresh, grab some blankets for all 4 sides if you can.
Tell the wife it's a good excuse to go shopping for nicer bed room stuff.

 

[HemiPar]

Hey Dale. I would think since you are doing it yourself and the bay is already painted it would be better to install seperate. Just for the fact that you will have to lower the engine in the bay and lift the trans into place under the car. If you could get someone to help installing them together would be better. Just my $.02 worth/
Jeff

 

[19duster74]

You can install the engine/tranny together. I just did mine, by myself, and used an engine tilter. It looked scary, I had never used an engine tilter before, but it worked out great. And it is so much nicer putting the tourque converter on the tranny/engine and lining everything up when it is out of the car.

The engine tilter I used I bought from Pep Boys for $30.00. I WOULD recommend that you have a second person though just for safety purposes. I was probably not very smart doing it alone...............

 

[Glow Worm]

We did mine seperate.
Not much room (on mine) to get your fingers in there to insert the bolts on top of the bellhousing........

 

[72dustyer]

I have a Lakewood B\H so it would be impossible to get to those bolts on top of it. I did it by myself in the cold with just an intake plate and a pos cherry picker. But get a friend to help to minimize nicks and scratches.

 

[memike]

Fill a cooler up with beer and get a friend to help!!
It will be dun before you know it. Be careful and take the time to be safe and
enjoy the install.

 

[dgc333]

I have removed and replaced engines by myself a number of times and have not found it to be difficult. I always have done them separately, if you have an engine tilter for your hoist that may make doing it as a unit the way to go though.

 

[FASTBACK340]

If your using a Lakewood scatter shield drop it in all together. Those top bolts are damn near impossible to get to once it's in the car. And if you don't have a tilter, go to Pep Boys ( or similar auto store chain...) and grab one. Best $30 you'll spend. And if your brave (and focused...) you *could* do it yourself. I'd much rather employ the help of a competent, sober co-worker to help.


Good luck! I should be dropping mine in next weekend.

 

[dgc333]

What is it about the Lakewood scatter shield that makes getting at the top bolts so tough?

When I have installed engines I let the engine rock back against the firewall which gives you about 3-4" of clearance between the floor and the bell housing to get at the top bolts. With an 18" extension and a universal I have never found those bolts to be tough to access.

 

[FASTBACK340]

On the scatter shield there's a "blow plate" that bolts against the back of the block sandwiching between the flywheel and scattershield. This is to prevent anything from getting out in case your clutch plate disintergrates and traps eveything INSIDE the "can". The plate and shield use the factory mounting bolts to mount it. Then there's additional bolts that go throught the lip of the plate above the edge of where the bellhousing normally ends. Then there's nut & bolts that clamp the scattershield around the entire perimiter of the shield. Along the sides and bottom it's not bad (althought the sides DO come close to the headers...) it's the top thats a holy horror to get at. The top lip sits RIGHT AGAINST the transmission tunnel. And if you let the engine tilt down like you nomally would for a stock bellhousing, these nuts & bolts jam against the firewall/trans. tunnel, making it damn near impossible to get to.

This is a random photo I found for a Chevy...


I plan on photographing a few things when I put my engine in. I want to shoot the modifications I made to my oil pump to work with ARP main studs, I want to photograph clearance from the top of the six pack manifold to the bottom of the hood, and now the issues with the scattershield. These are all topics that have come up in the past that I've promised help with.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to go wrench....

 

[DARTDALE]

Thanks for the advice guys!! I live in N.E. Ark. also.

 

[dgc333]

John, thanks for the explanation.